Best Chinese Restaurant (2004)

Eating in China is not like eating in the United States, and eating Chinese food in the United States is not like eating at Ocean City. As a matter of fact, it's nothing like eating at Ocean City -- as evidenced by the fact that on any given night, there are few round-eyed customers included in the throngs of regulars who crowd this slightly dingy but wholly authentic Chinese restaurant. The menu is packed with solid, everyday Chinese fare freshly made by a kitchen that's kept honest by crowds who would know the difference if it wasn't, and it's dotted here and there with the exotic and the special. The food is usually served family style, with many small plates of many different things making the rounds of all the crowded tables in the big, neon-lit dining room. Sauces thickened with pig's blood, seafood porridge, abalone and sea-turtle soup -- these are not flavors made for everyone, but if you have an adventurous palate, Ocean City is a must-stop on your culinary journey.